


Snow

by NekoAbi



Series: Experience Pieces [1]
Category: Sanders Sides (Web Series)
Genre: Gen, Human AU, Implied/Referenced Self-Harm, Pain
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-07
Updated: 2018-12-07
Packaged: 2019-09-13 06:35:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,448
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16887450
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NekoAbi/pseuds/NekoAbi
Summary: Snow has fallen and Virgil takes a walk.





	Snow

A thick layer of white coated everything outside since early that morning. The snowfall was light first thing in the morning, but it got heavier as the day progressed. By 8pm, when the sun had set, it had just stopped.

The layer of snow had already covered the footprints made in the early morning that led from the front door of their house out onto the street, and Virgil almost felt bad creating new ones. He glanced back at the door, shutting it quietly before shoving his hands in his pockets and taking the first step.

The snow felt like it could have squeaked beneath his shoes as he took step after step, compacting it and creating an easily followable trail. A small smile tugged at the corner of his lips as he watched his foot fall deep into the snow with his next step.

He wasn’t dressed for the snow, if he was to be honest with himself. The rips in his jeans may lead straight to pale skin, and maybe he was just wearing converse shoes, but no one was going to see him. Maybe just wearing his usual hoodie and shirt weren’t enough for this weather, but really it wasn’t all that cold. Patton and Roman were just complaining too much, as they wrapped themselves up in a pile of blankets in front of the TV.

Virgil wasn’t exactly sure where his feet took him until he reached the main road. It was practically silent out in the street. No cars, no people. Just quiet. He nudged the headphones he was wearing so that both now covered his head, music blaring. If he did this around the others, he knew he’d get some lecture off of Logan of how he was to ruin his hearing at this level. But he wasn’t here, and Virgil didn’t care. He made his way over to the large field, knowing it would be empty around this time of night.

The field was indeed empty. The path running down the middle to another street was lined on one side by tall lampposts that illuminated the heavily compacted snow. To the right of the path was a large white expanse where he couldn’t even notice the white goal posts that usually stood out. Instead, all he saw was the large tree that resided next to the path at the entrance. To the left was the fenced off playground. Virgil stared towards it, taking in the layer of white that now covered the usually dark soft ground underneath the climbing frame. The ground was untouched, and even several areas had a thick layer above them.

He didn’t dwell there for long, walking to the side of the play area and making his way slowly around the left side of field. Virgil followed the path that he would normally divert from, the one worn down by dog walkers during the day which followed the edge of the field. His eyes slid around him, taking in the view of the houses around the edge with their lights on, warmth seemingly pouring out from them, whilst he felt the exposed parts of his skin tingle with the cold.

Half way around the field, Virgil diverted off from the makeshift path and made his way over to the basketball area. The way the uneven grass felt beneath his feet soothed him, he didn’t understand why it did – he’d accepted this a while ago. He’d also accepted that the change from walking on uneven grass to hard surfaces was satisfying and grounding.

The boy stood on the edge of the basketball court, once again taking the in the surroundings. A hard gust of wind almost knocked him over, but he was able to regain his balance quick and just revel in the feeling. The wind chill was harsh, and almost felt like it burnt his skin. But it felt good.

Slowly and carefully, he made his way around the edge of the court. It was harder than usual, due to the high volume of snow covering the normally obvious edge, but it just made Virgil take his time. He knew the others wouldn’t come looking for him, at least not for a while. It’d take hours for them to really get that worried, and even then, he had his phone on him. He stopped under the hoop that faced towards where he’d entered and pulled out his phone.

The screen lit up but flickered heavily. Virgil simply sighed and skipped through a couple songs before unlocking his screen. His phone was pretty screwed, and it being this cold definitely didn’t help it, but he couldn’t bring himself to care. The device was freezing to the touch, but he still moved through it to the YouTube app. Opening it and finding the indie music channel he was subscribed to, he found the [January compilation](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ipj0ZzHQKMg) and let that play instead of his own music. He slid it back into his pocket, careful to not lock the screen again and making sure it was turned towards him so the light didn’t shine through.

Another strong wind blew through as he weaved his way through the back exit of the court, applying the burning feeling to his face again. He breathed in deeply, revelling in the cold slipping through his body. All too soon, he’d already hit the halfway point by crossing over the hard concrete of the path under the snow. Virgil took a moment to glance down, looking out the other way towards the opposing street. He could see the light from the small shop that resided down there, and the cars that were parked and not moved all day.

As he pressed forward, he took the chance to break away from the dog walker path and just walk on the more uneven surface. Each step felt different, each step was something new. Feeling all the ways the snow compressed beneath his feet due to the uneven ground just made him feel… something. It was indescribable, but just generally good. He made his way to the newly built structures in the corner of this area of the field.

Each structure was made of pieces of slated wood, all looking like various different ramps. They’d been around for a couple months, but Virgil still had no idea what they were. He walked the circle, running up and down each ramp. When he almost fell off one, a small noise fell past his lips as he smiled. He was fully aware no one was around, but there was still that fear. Thankfully it was the last one, so he continued his way around, almost running down the very small hill that lead to the now flat area.

He headed directly towards the tree next to the entrance he’d come from. It was now that the snow began to fall again. The clouded over sky now having a tinge of orange to it, making the whole area lighter. He diverted his path a little once he saw one of the goalposts coming into view, making it so he would walk through it. The change in the ground as he stood in the centre of the goal was, again, inexplicably amazing to feel. He reached out towards the top bar, feeling the cold metal on his already very cold fingertips. The smile returned for a moment as he took in the whole space around him.

It dropped as he began to consider how his body was feeling. He was fairly numb to the cold at this point, the spots where his skin was exposed particularly. Due to the thin fabric of the converse shoes, his feet were cold and also wet as the snow that had collected on top had melted. His hands were almost stinging, as was his face. The feelings were increased with another gust of wind. Virgil slid his eyes shut, just feeling. It was nice to feel something. It was nice to feel this on his skin. But, deep down, he knew it wasn’t right.

Telling himself this is what caused him to turn and continue his walk to the large tree. He still knew he didn’t understand. He didn’t understand why the pain of the wind chill made him relax. He didn’t understand why the sudden change from uneven to even ground was so satisfying. He didn’t understand why feeling the cold metal made him smile. Virgil knew he didn’t understand but was content with just feeling it.

Reaching the tree in no time, Virgil leant against the thick trunk and pulled out his phone yet again. Ignoring the flickering, he checked the time. 8:58pm. He still had time. His eyes slid over to the play area and, before he knew it, he was standing at the short gate.

His hand pushed against the red metal and it felt like it almost burned his skin, but again, Virgil let it happen. It didn’t bother him, and it was only for a short time, as he pulled away as he stepped inside. The gate clanked as it closed.

The white blanket was untouched. Left alone as parents weren’t allowing their kids in, just in case. The boy took large steps, as he walked towards the second gate that led to the second for the very young children. Instead of going through the gate like he normally would to sit and think, he instead moved to climb the short rope ladder that faced said gate. The crossing ropes were supported by a metal frame all around, leading up to a small platform held on by thick chains that allowed it to rock a little. He brushed the snow off the platform before taking a seat on the edge, letting his legs be supported by the ropes he’d climbed up.

Clicking down the volume of his music, Virgil slid the headphones so they rested around his neck. The music was still audible, but let the few ambient noises of the surrounding neighbourhood enter his ears now. His eyes slid closed as he listened.

The clock had ticked forward enough to hear the church bell ringing for 9pm. A cargo train was passing back over by the house he lived in, the sound travelling over to where he sat. Various noises of families existing in the houses close by came, and the sound of the wind rustling the various types of trees around the edge of the field combined with the low level of music to create a soothing atmosphere.

How long was spent just sat listening to the world, Virgil wasn’t sure. He couldn’t care to check the time. Instead, he opened his eyes and his gaze locked on the bar that sat just above his head, meant for small children to hold so they wouldn’t fall. He knew it was stupid, but he just wanted to see what it felt like so he leaned forward to rest his forehead against it.

The wind chill burn came at the same moment his skin touched the metal, the two sensations causing him to gasp audibly but not move for several moments. It hurt. He could already hear Patton’s voice in his ear, telling him not to do these things to himself. As he pulled back, Roman’s voice joined in, waxing poetic about all Virgil’s good traits and everything he’s worth. Virgil slid down the ropes slowly, hearing Logan join the two others in his head, talking frankly and openly about the negative effects such actions would have on his body.

With his feet firmly on the ground again, Virgil began the short walk back to the house. He followed the paths, until out of the field. Once he reached the central road that ran through the crescent street, he stepped into the road and walked down the centre of it. Due to the heavy snow, he knew there was unlikely to be any cars and all the people around would at least be having to take it slow so he could easily get out before any came close enough to cause him damage.

His first prediction was right, as he met no cars on the street before he turned down into where he lived. Virgil’s head tilted up to the sky, watching the flakes fall against the darkened sky as he walked ever closer to the warmth of the house he shared. He took a final deep breath of the cold air as he carefully stood into each of the footprints he’d made on the way out, allowing a soft laugh to fall out of him as he did so.

Unlocking the door was never going to be quiet, so Virgil resigned himself to just doing it as quick as he could. Thankfully, he could close it quietly. The warmth from the radiator right behind him seeped into his skin quickly. The boy made his way to sit on the stairs next to the door, and was about to take his shoes off when a cheery voice floated through from the living room.

“Welcome back!”

Virgil took his time undoing his laces, pulling them off and placing them around to the floor on the other side of the banister. He then stood and made his way to the doorway of the living room, seeing his three housemates sitting in there.

Patton and Roman were still curled up under the blankets on the sofa that backed onto the wall separating the room and the hallway, watching movies on the TV. Logan was sat on the opposing sofa, legs neatly tucked under himself. Virgil’s eyes dropped to his phone as Logan’s eyes moved to meet his, turning off the music compilation.

“How was the walk tonight, Virgil? I hope you didn’t get too cold.”

Virgil shook his head, “Nah, I was alright…”

It was then that Patton jumped out of the cocoon he’d been in all day, “Virgil! Did you go out in that?! You must be freezing! Come here!” He reached a hand out towards the boy in the doorway.

Virgil took the hand with a small smile, knowing what would happen next. He was thrown into the blanket pile, only just missing the other occupant, with Patton then fussing over him. His hoodie was taken away and replaced with another that was hanging outside on the cupboard door, and blankets were moved around so that Patton and Roman could both cuddle him.

A new tingling sensation flooded Virgil’s body, this one of warmth. His head leant back against the leather sofa, and his eyes slid shut. This was the best part of going out in the cold: the warming up afterwards.


End file.
